Raising
No minimumlot size
No minimum lot for raising; whatever quantity is asked for, the surface is napped and the hand softened.
Raising is the finishing step that combs and naps the loops on the fabric surface; this is where fleece, brushed single jersey and a blanket-soft hand come from. There is no minimum lot for raising; we raise whatever quantity the customer asks for.
It is one of the important and sensitive stages of production: as the wire drums open the surface, the fabric must not be over-worked, the loops must not break and the weight must not drop. We set the number of passes, the drum pressure and the speed to the structure of the fabric, lifting the nap as far as wanted and no further.
We apply raising reliably and accurately, without damaging the fabric. The target hand is fixed on a sample, and the production batch runs to the same setting, so surface and hand hold from batch to batch.
| Process | Raising (surface napping) |
|---|---|
| Lot size | No minimum quantity |
| Settings | Passes · drum pressure · speed |
| Control | Hand approved on sample |
Related guides: Brushed, Unbrushed and Fleece: Where Warmth Comes From in Polyester Knits · What a Stenter Really Does: A Heat-Setting Guide
Fabrics made in this unit
| Brushed (Fleece-Backed) Polyester French Terry | 220–350 g/m² |
|---|---|
| Brushed-back Three-thread Fleece | 250–350 g/m² |
| Polar Fleece | 180–400 g/m² |
| Anti-Pill Fleece | 200–340 g/m² |
| Microfleece | 100–200 g/m² |
| Double-Faced (Double-Brushed) Fleece | 200–320 g/m² |
Questions about this unit
Where does the warmth difference between brushed, unbrushed and fleece come from?
Warmth comes from air trapped by the surface pile. Unbrushed (loop-back) two-thread is the flattest and thinnest; brushing raises the reverse face to trap air; fleece is napped on both faces and gives the highest insulation.
From the guide: Brushed, Unbrushed and Fleece: Where Warmth Comes From in Polyester Knits
Does brushed fabric pill more?
A napped surface is more prone to pilling under abrasion; an anti-pilling finish and the right yarn choice markedly reduce this risk.
From the guide: Brushed, Unbrushed and Fleece: Where Warmth Comes From in Polyester Knits
What exactly does a stenter do?
It does four jobs in ONE PASS. Thermal setting: the fabric passes through hot-air zones at typically 180–210 °C for some 20–60 seconds, the amorphous regions reorganise and polyester is given a new thermo-mechanical MEMORY. Width control: pin or clip chains stretch the fabric to a programmed width. Overfeed: feeding the fabric faster than the exit speed adjusts length and weight. Chemical pad: the padder at the entry runs the fabric through a finish bath to roughly 40–70% wet pick-up, and the finish is cured in the same pass.
From the guide: What a Stenter Really Does: A Heat-Setting Guide
Should you pre-set or post-set?
They serve different purposes. Pre-setting fixes the greige knit BEFORE dyeing: the fabric settles into a flat, tension-free and crease-free geometry, so the subsequent 130 °C disperse bath carries less risk of crease marks and barré. Post-setting comes AFTER dyeing and reductive clearing and locks the final width, hand and finish. The canonical order is dyeing → drying/relax → heat setting (+pad) → surface finishing → compacting → inspection.
From the guide: What a Stenter Really Does: A Heat-Setting Guide